It is rare that a woman has two very successful yet different careers in one lifetime. However, this is exactly what Aisha Dozie, founder of Bossy Cosmetics, has had thus far. And she is quite young, so I am sure this is just the tip of the iceberg!

Dozie founded Bossy Cosmetics in the spring of 2019 after having a successful career as an investment banker. Why? Simply because she wanted to pursue a new passion that would bring her more joy and fulfillment. Dozie recognized that lipstick had helped bring boost her confidence when shaken by imposter syndrome as well as the day-to-day struggles of being in a male-dominated profession, so, she founded Bossy as a way to bring this gift to women everywhere.

I first became familiar with Bossy when I worked at a beauty retailer that carried Bossy. I was struck by Bossy’s vibrant colors as well as the inspirational messaging behind the brand. After all, Bossy’s tagline is “Empowering Women to Look, Feel, and Do Good.” Bossy contradicts the societal notion of frivolity within beauty through empowering women through feeling confident through vibrance in their appearance.

After reading this interview, you will feel inspired and supported by Aisha and her army of ambitious, beautiful, and bossy women. Now, here is Aisha and her many words of wisdom for girls and women everywhere!

 You were an investment banker at Goldman Sachs and other banks until just a few years ago. Why did you pivot in your 40s and create Bossy Cosmetics?

I burned out is the honest truth. It wasn’t a pivot that I had planned. It was, I’m burned out. I’m exhausted. I’m the mother of three young kids. I am travelling a lot working super hard as an investment banker. I realized I didn’t love what I was doing, and so I burned out.

I got sick. I was diagnosed with severe hypertension, and that was for me kind of like a “come to Jesus” moment of, You need to fix your life, or you are not going to have a life. I realized that my biggest source of stress was work! My children are very young. I need to be around to raise them. So I got that diagnosis, and I always tell people it was the best bad news ever because I was like, Ok, we are going to change life now. And I quit my job. I fell down and got back up. I spent a year and did a fellowship at Stanford. That one year at Stanford was where I came up with the idea of creating a cosmetics company that really focuses on women empowerment that masquerades as a beauty company.

You were raised in the projects of Cambridge, Massachusetts and also in Nigeria. Did your background expose you to the power of beauty during your adolescence? Or did it come later in life?

When I was in Cambridge, my mother was getting her degree, but she also worked as a salesgirl at Neiman Marcus. My mother was, and still is, super stylish – we have a lipstick called “Inspiring” that I dedicated to her. She always wore these bright pink lipsticks, beautiful hats, and beautiful dresses. She, I would say, was my sole inspiration for beauty at my adolescent age, but, by the time I got to middle school when we moved to Nigeria, I was exposed to a completely different set of [beauty]. African beauty is extravagant. When we’re going out, we don’t do you know, casual, just like chill. It’s the whole face makeup. It’s the whole hair. It’s the whole outfit. It’s over the top! I thought my mother was way out of this world, but by the time we moved back to Nigeria, I realized this was an African beauty thing. We are very conscious about how we look, how we carry ourselves, and how we show up in the world.

Bossy Cosmetics is for women who self-identify as being ambitious? Have you always identified as ambitious?

Always. I always identified as being ambitious, but I have not always been ambitious. Does that make sense? I was always driven from when I was young, especially at the point when we were young and living in the projects. I would watch TV and see nice things, and I wanted to have nice things, and I knew we didn’t have the money to have those nice things. My mom was always into If you work really hard, then you can afford to buy those things and have those experiences, so I was like, Okay, if I want nice things, I better work to get those nice things. I always knew the value of work. I think as years went on, as I started having kids, there I had moments where I said, Okay, maybe these next couple of years, I am not going to be as ambitious as I could be. Within a period of six years, I had three children, so back-to-back-to-back I had kids. So yes, I was still ambitious, but I wasn’t actively ambitious because I was so focused on mothering little human beings. I’ve always been ambitious, but there are some moments where I have been like, I’m too tired to even think about being ambitious right now.

Between Cornell undergrad, Harvard business school, and a fellowship at Stanford, you have a very prestigious education. Did this education prepare you to be a founder, or was it life experience that prepared you to be a founder? Or, was it a mix of both?

I think it was a mix of both for sure. I saw the way to have nice things and do nice things was to have money, and I knew I didn’t I have money. I knew that I wanted to have money, and I knew that the way to get money was to go to good schools. So it was almost like I was plotting this life that was driven by ambitious. When you are young, you just want to buy nice shoes or a nice dress – you don’t really have ambitions that are driven by impact at that age. I was in high school in Nigeria, so I wanted a global career. I didn’t want a career that was Nigeria-focused. I realized I had to figure out a way to get into a really prestigious school, so that I could get a good job. You don’t just get a great job from Nigeria – you have to get into a really good school. I was really methodical about mapping out the picture that I wanted and the key steps to get there. When I am focused on something, I will do whatever it takes to get it. It’s studying for the SAT; when you get in, you’ve got to study to make sure you don’t flunk out; you’ve got to apply for the job; you’ve got to interview for the job. You don’t just decide, and it happens. It is hustle all the way – it never ends. I was always focused on getting myself to the life I wanted and building that life for myself.

You used your lipstick to give you confidence in the male-dominated workforce. What other tips can you give to “bossy” women who feel intimidated by a male dominated workplace?

I consider makeup “war paint.” I feel like all of that external stuff (makeup, hair, etc.), guys think “oh that’s trivial.” I’m like no, no, no. For women, how you put yourself together really helps with the confidence-building process. So I always say there’s that part, and then the other part is to always be ready, so we don’t have to get ready. If you are going to a meeting, you better be prepared! Know the client, know what they want. Know the customer, know what they want, know what they like, know what they don’t like. What do you bring to the table? How are you different? You want to look good and put yourself together, but you have to perform well.

The other thing is: you are enough. We doubt ourselves so much. I definitely suffer from imposter syndrome. I am totally seconding guessing myself, but luckily, I have this other voice in my head that’s like: do it, do it, do it. You’re not going to get a “yes” if you don’t ask, so go out and ask for what you want. Go out and get what you want.

Bossy is still a relatively new brand… how have you scaled your business to become so big in such a short amount of time?

Sometimes it feels like I’ve been doing this for 30 years. Other times it feels like I’ve been doing this for 30 days. You’re all in. It never ends. You are constantly doing. You’re constantly thinking. The good thing is I love what I do. I love love love love seeing women succeed. I love love love love seeing women wealthy. I love love love love seeing woman happy – self-actualized – they’ve got a great life doing what they love. The good thing is that’s what my brand espouses, so the good thing is that I love what I’m doing. And then the good thing is also that customers like what we’re creating. People like our products! I try to stay super super close to the customer. I respond to all DM’s. I look at emails, the team shares stuff with me, I read feedback and reviews, I reach out to customers. I want to know what’s top of mind for our customer, whether it’s about beauty or wellness or sales, because you really want to stay on top of what’s important and meaningful to your customer to create thoughtful products and experiences. If you are passionate about what you do, there is a need, and you do it differently… that’s what I’ve been leaning into, honestly. That’s it!

What is the Bossy lip product you cannot live without.

Our Bullet Lipsticks, I’ve got to say. I’m not going to say they’re my favorite because I feel like [the products] are my children, and you’re not allowed to have a favorite child, but what I will say is that the lipsticks are so creamy, so moisturizing, and then they’re pigmented. I wore red lipstick the other day to the beach. I don’t care. I am definitely “Team Too Much.” My lips are always going to have something gorgeous on them – they’re always going to pop! [The Bullet Lipsticks] are very nourishing. They’ve got watermelon seed oil in them, so my lips feel great, and I look great. I am partial to our Bullet Lipsticks.